Friday, June 30, 2006

Yesterday Leah and I went to Dr. John's, then to the Farmer's Market (Leah bought some baby red potatoes for our dinner with my folks on Monday), and then we came back here. She brought her drill with and put four hooks up for me to hang plants. Leah drilled while I arranged plants in the hangers and Karma captured dead stray leaves and attempted every time my back was turned to take a nibble out of the green ones. There are now two plants hanging on the porch, one in the living room, and one in the bedroom. I didn't get pictures yet because I was too tired today after the week, as usual, to accomplish much. I spent all my energy cleaning up all the places where the plants had been. Did a lot of dusting and climbing about on the stool today. Had some tiny coffee cup hooks from years ago and twisted them into the wall to hold up the philodendron that has made its way across the desk hutch and a bookcase so far--with secret dreams of reaching the windows. I thought I'd help out. By the time I was done with that I felt like a noodle. Sat and watch Syriana tonight. Was a good movie--but it makes me sad, too. We are so dependent on fossil fuels in so many ways. I wish there were more options for people--and options that didn't cost so much more--options that didn't harm the Earth. Wish people didn't lie and use other people to get what they want. So much corruption. But--then it wouldn't be Earth, I suppose. It's like one big spiritual testing ground down here. Sometimes I feel like I got held back a grade or two. Anyways--Updates: Miss Karma is feeling better. She hasn't been sick or acting any weirder than she normally does--chuckle! Thank you to the people who have asked about her. :) She really scared me there for a couple of days! Had to be something she ate, I figure. I tried not giving her any canned food, but she cried and cried--and the second day, thinking I was a bit dense or had suddenly gone senile, howled her protest. It might be the routine more than the actual food. So, she has only gotten her very favorite canned food (salmon) and only about a tablespoon a day. And she scarfs it down and I take the plate away as soon as she's done (because there are always tiny pieces she will come back and search out later and I don't want to take the chance after the barfing and listlessness). She's been doing great! Back to her old strange self! :) My changing the eating habits has going pretty darn well, actually. I am concentrating on eliminating the wheat and dairy first. I have also cut back on sweets, but will not be giving them up in July that's for sure. (Maybe never!) I have just tried to make them healthier--at least in my own estimation--hehe! Have been sticking to dried fruit, sherbet, frozen yogurt, popsicles (can you tell it's been hot out), and using maple syrup for sweetener on hot cereal. Next month I am getting brave and going to try ordering wheat-free dry cereal, frozen waffles, and cookies. Obviously desperate for sweets--but, also, it is difficult to find things to eat for breakfast with no wheat or dairy when you've spent 55 years eating toast, bagels, dry cereal, eggs, omelets, French toast, etc. I make up what I call Monk's Gruel and keep it in the frig, but it gets old eating the same thing every day. (It is a recipe for a sweet rice, hot cereal type of thing from a book of recipes from a monastery.) As long as I have something sweet around, I have been able to stick pretty well to the rest of it. I am shocked that I am not going crazy nuts for my French Vanilla Cafe from International Coffees?? I have been drinking that for years and years--just love it!! I actually have part of a can at Dagan and Leah's and can have a mug when I go over there to paint -- until it is gone, of course. And I have actually forgotten to make it until quite a while after I'm there! Shock! So, it is going well so far. :) My budget won't allow ordering from CashWise twice a month yet--but maybe in August. My sleeping has been screwy again this week. I think it is the doing the PH samples and temp stuff. Has thrown me off--but it doesn't take much--hehe! I got less sleep this last week and will be resting up over the weekend and hopefully sleeping in late! Ahhh! I get less and less functional as I get less and less sleep--and the pain level goes up and up--which makes it hard to sleep. Vicious circle. Hope to break the cycle this weekend.Speaking of--I'm off. More tomorrow. :)

Thursday, June 29, 2006

I'll have to get a better picture of the makeshift screen and the view. Leah is planning on helping me put up some hanging plants out there and a couple inside, too, tonight after Dr. John's--so I will be taking more pictures of the porch.

This is the view from the livingroom, or my greatroom--hehe! I keep the shades at half-mast when it is supposed to get so hot out (90 degrees today?). This is where I do my crafts, some writing & reading, and painting--my everything table. Occasionally eat there, too--hehe!

This entire end of the room is considered the "craft area" and craft supplies continue down to the second cherry bookcase--seen in next picture.

These all contain craft and painting supplies. There are additional supplies elsewhere in the apartment, too. Note: there are advantages to living alone--hehe! I can arrange my place any way I want to and not get any grief for it! Not too many people would put a dining room table in front of their picture window.

Speaking of--Karma loves it!! For those of you who hear me talk about how she reminds me of my grandmother--always checking out the comings and goings of the neighbors--here's Miss Karma keeping track. She prefers to sit sideways in the chair over the wooden arm for a better view.

She keeps vigil off and on--day and night. Not only on the lookout for people and cars, but for birds, dogs being walked, and what she misses the most (since the carpet went down this spring)--bugs! On rainy days and nights she even watches the droplets creep down the screens and glass. It's a tough job, but somebody has to do it.

And the job is occasionally too exhausting even for Karma. She will drift off, but remain in sentry position in case of the sound of a child's cry, a bird's wing, the lawnmower, the garbage truck, or a bug buzzing its body against the screen. Widescreen Cat-TV is just too fascinating to miss.

And then there's Miss Gracie. Timid little Gracie who hides behind her big threats and runs for cover at the drop of -- well, anything loudly dropping...or flapping...or hands of any kind (except when she wants to be saved from the floor or is really tired and wants to go nite-nite in her cage). I have had several mistreated birds over my lifetime. I see right through her and she knows it. I give her her space and we get along fine. And she loves anybody who will keep their hands down at their sides, come up close, and talk sweetly to her. She'll come up near and sometimes talk/sing to you. She will even let me give her kisses when she is in the mood.

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

This is where I am sitting as I write tonight--at my desk--home--tired and sore, but happy.

It was painting night at Dagan and Leah's. Here is my son, Dagan, working on his Yin Yang symbol in black and red. He got almost done tonight. Just needs a tiny bit of tweaking and he will be finished and has to figure out what to do for another project!

Here's Leah, my daughter-in-law, who cooked us a yummy chicken cashew stir fry tonight before we began painting. Thank you, Leah!! She is painting a black undercoating on all four of her paintings. She is going to do the oriental symbols for the seasons on the black backgrounds. She got her first coat done on all four of them!

And then there'sme--attempting to learn the scumbling technique. I have no idea what I am doing, but I am having fun! I didn't get very far, but am learning some things not to do--hehe! And with acrylics, you can just let it dry and paint over it again if you don't like what you did. I love that! So different than watercolor painting. I do love my watercolors, too--they are just so different. I am not used to worrying about my paint drying up! Chuckle!

Definitely decided that I need to place an order to Dick Blick for a few additional supplies come July--need gesso and a couple other things. This is definitely a change of pace and it is always exciting to learn some new way to be creative. We are not meeting for two weeks, due to the Fourth of July, my folks visiting, and then a trip to Minneapolis the weekend after that. Just too much going on for a bit here, so we will wait and meet again on the 12th of July. By then the additional supplies should have arrived, too.

I am too tired to say much else. I am really getting a kick out of putting the photos online!! More tomorrow! :)

Got the camera to work!! Here is the cut-down watercolor (that I didn't like how it turned out)--three Black-Eyed Susans--now pasted into the front of my altered book. First thing I have put in the book about my dream life or ideal life--a little bit of attempted art. I am having a heck of a time figuring out how to add photos. This is my third try. They seem to load bottom to top? And you have to wait until later to add the captions, I guess. Here are the cards I made. This is a close-up of the card with the most dark ink on it. Or as much of a close-up as I am able to get with this camera so far-hehe!Here's the actual painting hanging outside my apartment door. I wasn't crazy about this one, either. But it turned out so-so. I screwed up the center and didn't leave white spots (watercolors)--so I cheated and just dabbed some silver acrylic paint in the center. I am just a novice. And this is just hanging outside my door--where it could be vandalized (they had some trouble with that in this building for a while?). I had to put something out there that I didn't care what happened to it--hehe!

I tried to get a close-up to show that there's a lot more definition to the petals than my copier had left in it-ha! And with the last copy I tried to make there were streaks all thru the flower, so the color cartridge has bit the dust, as they say. This is a Plains Coreopsis--wildlfower.

Well, this took me a long time. I will have more photos to come, tho, now!!

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Gorgeous, gorgeous day! Sunny with a hazy sky, breezes, and 72 degrees. Sadly the haze is being caused by the smoke from forest fires in nearby Canada. Supposed to stay nice like this for a couple of days. Let's hope they're right.I was up earlier, but got some sleep last night in two different sessions. During the middle of the night I watched some things I had taped and read. After I got up the second time this morning, I made up three cards. My printer is running out of ink, or I would have made some more. I used copies of a wildflower I painted (that is now hanging outside of my door over my apartment number) for the fronts of the cards. Framed them with orange colored paper and put them on folded handmade paper. I had to print on regular typing paper--or as Leah said, "What? You mean printer paper? Nobody says typing paper any more." hehe! Several of the handmade papers are so thin (I was experimenting to see how thin I could actually make them) that cardstock would have been too heavy to put on the front. Well, got motivated and I just went to finally open the box with the digital camera Dagan and Leah gave me and the rechargeable batteries are all dead--of course. Serves me right--hehe! I should have been monkeying with this camera and learning how to use it when they gave it to me over a month ago. So, I have some batteries charging and maybe I can actually add a picture tomorrow. I see where there's a box I can click on to "add image"?? I'll check it out tomorrow.My cleaning girl, Caroline, came this afternoon. I had some extra things for her to do. She's a nice girl. I am glad to have the help. She comes every two weeks and does the maintenance type stuff: vacuuming, scrubs the floors, cleans the bathroom, and some dusting. It is difficult for me to get down on my knees (arthritis) and I can't lean on my bad arm for any length of time to scrub with my good arm. From overusing my good arm, I tore up that shoulder about a year and a half ago carrying grocery bags and it still isn't back 100% even with all the exercises and stretching. That's why I am so glad they have CashWise Delivers in Fargo-Moorhead!I also cut down my first wildflower painting (three sunflowers-didn't like how it turned out) to the size of the altered book to see how it would look. I liked it better cut down, so I pasted it into the book. Guess I should attempt to take more than one picture tomorrow, eh? I sat and cut out all the pictures I had printed (found online) for the book, too, and put them in a big envelope. (They're why I am out of ink.) Now I have to figure out how to organize the book. There are going to be sections/areas.Tomorrow we paint!! And after work tonight Leah was picking up her new wok she ordered (matches her super nice cookware) and she's going to make us a stir-fry for dinner before we start painting tomorrow night! I am looking forward to that. I won't have to cook this week at all--ha!Well, I am off to read. Hopefully I might just be able to figure out how to take and post some pictures tomorrow...???

Monday, June 26, 2006

I'm writing earlier tonight. With 3 1/2 hours of sleep, I will am heading for bed as soon as I finish this short blog entry. Got hot and sticky enough to close the place up and put the AC on. Too tired to do much today. I was reading blogs for a while--fribro, writing, and general. Doesn't seem like most people write every day. Maybe I won't after while, either? Went to Dr. John's with Leah. Home--ate dinner, watched a little TV, and I am fading away here.Doubt I will even finish one chapter in the book and I'll likely be up in the middle of the night again..but off I go...zzzzz

I was so tired last night and had a headache from the no coffee for the weekend, so I went to bed early. The caffine headache was not like I have at other times in my life because I only drink a mug or two a day anymore, but it was annoying enough. Used to drink coffee from morning till night and maybe 1 1/2 to 2 pots a day. I have cut way back over the years, but I don't think I can quit altogether. Grew up in a family where the last thing they did before they went to bed was unplug the coffee pot! haha! Times have changed. Since I went to bed so early and just felt "too awake" when I woke up at 4am--I did the urine sample and the rest for Dr. John to be on the safe side because I may or may not sleep again. And, sure enough, I wasn't able to get back to sleep. So, I was making coffee at 4:30am (now that I can eat and drink normally again!) and I am sitting here drinking my favorite black coffee--Sumatra Blue Batak from Ristreto's Coffee Shop. And it tastes absolutely remarkable after my coffee drought! :)The instructions for all these tests to be done when you wake up are easy enough for people who sleep regular hours, but with me--sleep can be up for grabs sometimes. Especially if I go to bed early--I often wake up like this in the middle of the night and can't get back to sleep. I have never been a napper--I have seldom napped even since getting fibro! I was just that kind of kid. Fought sleep with every ounce of my being--but then when I finally crashed and sleep took over/won out, I could sleep and sleep. I couldn't sleep in the car, in school, strange places, when something was coming up the next day--like school starting, a new job, etc--(probably even taking urine samples--hehe!) Anything bothering me, worrying me. And, of course, Dagan being sick all those years...maybe fibro is my body's way of forcing me to slow down and sleep more? Anyways, I hope I did everything well enough for the tests to be accurate. I did forget about the no salt on Saturday, so I had oatmeal & soy milk (no sweetener) and baked fish and broccoli yesterday. Did have two pieces of dried mangos, tho, too. (Such a sweet tooth I have!) I am glad I have lots of leftovers this week, so I don't have to worry about cooking for a while. Already made up a new batch of rice, too, so I am all set! All I need to do today (before I bring the garbage out) is hand chop the last onions and get them in oil. The arm is better now. (Arm didn't feel up to working on cards over the weekend like I had planned--cooking, etc, was enough.)Since I am up soooo early, I might work on some cards today or do something productive. Oh, I watched the tape on Jerry Yarnell's "Distant Thunder" painting and took notes yesterday on all three of the classes that covered that picture. I looked up his website and printed off a color copy of the painting so I can have it along with me on Wednesday. And I looked up pictures of lightning online and printed off a few of them on one sheet--examples of how to draw/paint it into the sky. (I thought his lightning looked a little unnatural.) So, I did get something done. Aha! The Universe telling me something again. I have the morning news on and they had a segment on the Farmer's Market. Sadly, I have never made it there. Apparently it has moved to Main and Broadway--and besides the usual Saturdays (which is difficult for me to get a ride because Dagan and Leah are always so busy on the weekends), they are open from 5-7pm on Thursdays!! We go to Dr. John's on Thursdays around that time, and it wouldn't be that much out of the way to stop by the Farmer's Market to maybe buy some fresh local produce!! I will have to tell Leah today! That is exciting!

I am happy that my finally changing my eating habits has apparently been incentive for Dagan and Leah to begin changing thier's, also. They have also talked and thought about it for some time. We have all done some smaller changes--but I have finally taken the plunge--hehe! I feel badly that Dagan has learned unhealthy eating habits from me. I hope he'll be eating healthier now--and Leah, too, of course. Maybe they can avoid some of the pitfalls of a lifetime of eating poorly--like me? I love them both so much and I want them both around for a long, long time! :)Well, since it is supposed to rain again this afternoon, but it is beautiful out right now (and I am actually awake before noon!)--I am going to get in the shower and go enjoy the porch. Just started All Over But The Shouting by Rick Bragg--the last book from the box of books I got from Ruby so long ago!! The last one!! TaDa!!

Saturday, June 24, 2006

Another day of passing thunderstorms. I really enjoy them when you can watch them without being out and getting drenched in them. I love the fresh smell and how green everything looks afterwards.Okay--I was going to explain about the testing that Leah and I are doing with Dr. John. He's gone through some more training and has set up a lab in the back room. We are getting a guinea pig discount ($40 vs maybe $180 after he gets done practicing on us--haha!) It is testing the body chemistry and such. First, on Thursday, he swabbed our inner forearms with some iron stuff that looked like iodine and we had to see how many hours it took for our body to absorb it and for it to disappear altogether. We have paperwork and logs to fill out.Then for two days (we are both doing this weekend) you have this very restricted diet and then take a urine sample the third morning. I thought I was doing well--but then reread it tonight and saw no salt! Well, the stir fry have salty sauces in them. Good grief. Well, I'll just have to have some salt I guess. I don't have a lot to pick from in here right now. The list is No: nutritional supplements, gum, breath mints, candy, food colorings, artificial sweeteners, sugar, sweets, coffee, black tea, soda, salt, beets, carrots, berries, processed foods--only natural foods. Eat meat or fish two meals a day and drink a minimum of 6 glasses of water each day. Whew. Well, I didn't have fish today. I only had enough fish in the freezer for one day, anyways. I'll bake some fish tomorrow.Anyways, then on Monday morning--besides the urine sample--we start taking our temperature before we get up and move around, under arm temp. Then PH test our saliva and urine in the morning right away and then test urine PH again in 1-3 hours. He said do that for a week. And we can eat normally during that week. He'll take a finger-prick blood sample, too, later.All of these test different things. Apparently he will check everything from cholesterol to thyroid? Should be interesting to see what the results are. I am adding this to what I already owe him. I just make monthly payments to him. I tease him that at this rate I will still be making payments to him after he retires!It says that the iron test should have taken around 24 hours to disappear. Mine was gone in 6 hours and Leah's was gone in 8! So, we must need iron? I am wondering about cholesterol and thyroid, too? Time will tell.Last night I slept eight hours and was only up twice! Something has really begun to happen with my sleeping better--and I am very happy about that! I wonder if he can do anything about energy/exhaustion from the Fibro? Hummm??? I told him about the arthritis in my hips and knees and the plantar fasciitis and heel spurs--and he has worked with my knees and hips--pulling my legs straight and moving my knees about. And he does some massaging of my feet and hits them with the little hammer, too.Well, the hardest things for me so far this weekend have been the no coffee and the no sugar (of course, I had salt without thinking about it in the stir fry sauce). I can hardly wait until I can have a big, steaming mug of hot coffee Monday morning!!Well, I am off to read. Hope to sleep well!

Friday, June 23, 2006

Last night I was trying out Leah's new garlic twist. I was chopping up a whole bunch of cloves so I could put them in a jar with oil in the frig--handy. But working the twist was too hard on my bad arm, so I couldn't write last night. And pretty sore today, but on the mend--so this will be short. I chopped onions today in the food processor and put them in a jar with oil for the frig, too. Makes the new methods of cooking so much easier! Prep work!Thunderstorms off and on all day. I watched The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy--old and new versions. Silly stuff! :)When I overdo it--I am a zombie. So today was a zombie day. Puttered about. Did a second layer of paint on the first two pages of the altered book. Found a few more pictures online yesterday. Worked on making cards a little. Just a quiet day--with occasional thunder--hehe!I slept for 5 1/2 hours straight and felt so disoriented that I couldn't get back to sleep. So, I am dragging today. Off to bed early. Still amazed I am suddenly sleeping longer! Three hours used to be about my max. I am so used to being up every 1-2 hours that I felt drugged when I woke up--ha! I could get used to it, tho--easily! :)I can smell the wet grasses and the pond in the field out my windows. The breeze has cooled off a bit now tonight. Oh, Leah was out shopping all last night after we went to Dr. John's and she found me a cheap box fan for my bedroom window! $10.99 at Target and it has a lot of power. Also makes a lot of noise but, since I am usually sleeping late, it helps drown out the kids playing in the yard. :) And she brought me a big jug of cashews from Sam's Club, and I asked her when she called to see if they had Iams for indoor cats or adults for Karma--they had the indoor stuff. And Leah surprised me with a bottle of dry sherry from the liquor store (instead of the cooking sherry that doesn't taste as good) for the Chinese recipes. I didn't realize they used sherry quite a bit--at least in this cookbook (Helen Chen). It was like Christmas!! I just wanted to hug her and hug her and hug her! I'm glad Karma can have something else for a treat. I think it is just not agreeing with her to have the canned or pouch food lately. I think it might be spoiling too fast or something. Now she can try this Iams for Indoor Cats and we'll see how that goes. She even threw up a few days ago--before she hid under the bed that one day. Unless she managed to find a Japanese beetle (look like lady bugs) that got under the screen? She eats them and they do make her throw up? I just am glad Karma's feeling more like her old self. She was playing chase and hide and seek like normal the last couple nights at bedtime. She's my companion. Makes me laugh every day. I worry when she acts sick.I'll have to try to remember tomorrow to write about Dr. John's testing program that Leah and I signed up for on Thursday.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Thought I'd better chat for a little bit right now, before I sit down and get comfortable.I was really worried about Karma after I got up today. She usually follows me around, under my feet, while I get Miss Gracie up and feed critters. She was there and suddenly she was gone. I looked all over for her and found her lying under my bed. She wouldn't even come out to play with her favorite toy on the stick (like a fishing pole effect). She hasn't been eating much of her canned or pouch food I give her as a treat every day. I wonder if it is sitting there too long and she comes back and eats some later and gets a stomach ache? Not sure. But, I decided not to give her any moist/wet foods and just stick with dry for a while and see how she is. She laid under the bed and slept for a long time. She finally came strolling out--but is acting slower and not herself. She seems a bit better now when I got home tonight. I'd be really upset if anything happened to her!I was gone all night. First, Dagan took me to Dr. John's. I had forgotten to tell him that I actually slept almost 5 hours the night before and 4 1/2 hours now last night, too! That is amazing! I was almost disoriented! Since I have fibro, I usually wake up every 1-2 hours all night long--every night--which is why I need to sleep longer than I used to and am still more tired when I wake up than I used to be. Just don't get "good" sleep. So--this is another amazing thing happening since I started to see Dr. John! Then--we went to Dagan and Leah's after the chiropractor and did planning and some painting tonight. Only Dagan and I actually started painting. There's a lot of prep work and deciding on what you want to try to paint (all three of them were searching the Internet). This is so much fun already! Dagan is doing a red and black yin yang symbol. He got it drawn and got all the red parts painted--the first layer, anyways. Leah is going to do four Oriental symbol paintings. I think she decided to make the four seasons--black background and different colors for each symbol on each canvas. Dagan and Leah are both using 10 X 10 inch canvases that they ordered. Jennifer wants to go and buy a different canvas than what I had available and might do a long-stemmed flower like she saw in one of my books. They sell canvases at a few places in town: Hobby Lobby, Michaels, and Mathison's Art Store. She's looking for a tall, skinny canvas. I am going to attempt to do a landscape that I watched on the tape with Jerry Yarnell--the one of the thunderstorm with the lightning. A very bold move for me! I didn't take a larger canvas, either. Using one of the primed boards I had that are maybe 10 X 14 inches. I'd like to kind of practice on the smaller board and then try the same thing on the larger canvas (16 X 20?). I did my gray undercoating and that's all. We decided to meet again next Wednesday. :)So, I am pretty beat. Going to have some sherbet and go sit in my chair and watch TV for a while and unwind. Doesn't take much to wear me out still--but I am able to do more than I was a couple months ago!! Life is Good!!!

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Wow! I am not sure what the chiropractor does banging around on my spine, but I slept for five straight hours last night without waking up! I can't remember the last time I slept that much at one time! Years! Wow!

I was inspired to start working at the collage/altered book, so I was online off and on looking up pictures I could print off to use for my fantasy life theme. Things to do with art/crafts, writing, and energy work. Found some pictures of some studios people build out in the woods near their houses. A fantasy desk for the writing room. Fantasy painting equipment--large easel, tables, etc. Was having a great time this afternoon! hehe! I have at least gotten started collecting pictures--I have finally begun! Dagan brought me to Dr. John's and dropped me off back home. It is nice to see Dagan and Leah more often, even if it is just a short trip to Moorhead and back. Nice to spend time with them alone. :) Tomorrow Dagan picks me up--and I have to have the painting supplies packed and ready to go (table easel, books, drawing pencils, etc). Finally we will paint! Or at least do the underpainting and a sketch--hehe! We will start, anyways.

Then tonight Ruby called me!! I haven't heard from her for sooo long! We burned up the wires between here and Menomonie, Wisconsin!! I have missed her voice and her laughter more than I even realized! Wonderful way to spend the evening!! So, now I am chatting on this blog. Not sure anybody actually reads it and it is just the boring chit-chat of my life--but I am slowly getting more comfortable writing an email and CCing it to the world. And if my friends and family ever wonder what I have been up to, they can check and see pretty easily. :)If I keep feeling better and better, I will have more time and energy to write more and might learn how to use the digital camera Dagan and Leah gave me when they bought a new one. Might be able to put some picture on here and on my website--eventually. Well, I am not sure they let me put them on this site without paying more, but I might do that eventually, too, if I become more computer savvy. hehe!There is pounding music again tonight, BTW. And laughter. Somewhere below me. (I'm on third floor.) But it didn't last too long last night, so I am hoping it will stop after a little while and it doesn't seem quite as loud as last night. Me--I am a night owl, so it doesn't bother me so much because I am still awake. But if they wake up anybody who was sleeping, I am sure they'd be annoyed.Well, I am going to go sit down and relax and watch a movie. Go back in time to English warlords and Irish Kings and knights and fair maidens (Tristan & Isolde).

Monday, June 19, 2006

Unusual for my building--there is pounding music playing somewhere. Just started maybe ten minutes ago. Hope this isn't going to be a regular thing? With all the children in the building, the tenants won't put up with this for very long.

Anyways, Leah took me to Dr. John's and home after work. If it wasn't for Leah, I wouldn't be going to Dr. John in the first place and wouldn't be seeing these improvements and feeling better! She is so generous and kind to me! Dagan sure has wonderful taste! ;) Jennifer called and came by tonight. We sat on the porch and chatted and then watched some TV. She's such a nice girl! The day just flew by today!! Beautiful, sunny, the usual Fargo wind, and about 80 degrees, I think.

Checked out some acrylic painters (on tape off PBS) and really like Jerry Yarnell's style. So did Jennifer. I watched some more of his shows after Jennifer left. Guess I'll have to see if I can buy one of his DVD's in July? Not sure if I will be able to, with needing to buy a fan or two now, but we'll see. Maybe I can cut back on something else--juggle! :) Getting excited about Wednesday!!Been thinking a lot about my "dream life" that Dr. John wants me to write down and construct a collage, too. I would live out in the country where I could go out and walk the land. And there'd be trees and a stream/creek--running water of some kind. I'd be healthy again where I could work at something for hours on end. I could write all night till dawn again and work on poems and stories. I'm not sure what the place would look like, but I know I'd have a room for writing--with a computer and all my writing books (could be a smaller room--wouldn't even need windows!). I'd have a craft/painting room--maybe even a separate studio!--large enough for groups of people to come and all participate--with lots of light! I'd have a smaller room just for energy work where I could keep my massage table up all the time and have plenty of room to walk around it while I worked--with my music and candles. And I'd have a dining room, or some room with a large table, where I could have groups come for Sacred Circle. Those are the three things I need to do in my life: write, arts & crafts, and the energy work/spiritual path. Well, and I need critters around, too. :) I know Dr. John wants me to be more specific about all this, so that's why I have been thinking about doing a collage or altered book first and gathering pictures of places. I guess it helps to manifest things into your life, right? Be fun, regardless. Like being a kid again--cutting and pasting and painting!

Well, I am off to read. I missed appointments when I was sick, so I am supposed to go Mon-Thurs this week to Dr. John's. All I know is that it is helping me and I keep seeing gradual improvement! Blessed! I am blessed!! :)

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Sleepathon last night! Over 15 hours. So, I felt so much more human today. Anybody with fibromyalgia knows how we need our sleep and don't function very well when we go for days on less than our normal amount. And my normal amount went up from 7-8 to more like 9-10 hours when I got fibro.Anyways, such a beautiful day!! Was able to open all the windows and enjoy the breeze again after being closed up for a couple days due to heat and humidity. Sat on the porch and read some. Wrote several letters. Made a couple long distance calls to people I haven't talked to for a while. Puttering thru my craft supplies thinking about and planning how to do my first Altered Book (on my dream life). Did a little bit of prep work on starting to put together some cards from handmade paper. Had the TV on for background noise, as usual--hehe! But am now going to do some actual watching of the two shows I taped tonight--The 4400 and Rescue Me.Peaceful day. I treasure the peaceful, calm days!

Saturday, June 17, 2006

I just get well and last night after I wrote I became very ill. Had tuna salad with Miracle Whip--and the expiration date was middle of last month. I figured out that it was food poisoning after I finally threw up till there was nothing left and suddenly started to feel a little better after terrible stomach pains for over an hour. Good Lord! Miracle Whip went into the trash and will not be replaced because of my new way of eating, anyways. Might have been a God-will-get-you-for-that moment--hehe! I am getting gradually closer to 100% switched over, eh? So, I was dragging today. Wrote a couple of letters. Feeling so grateful for everything in my life. Thinking a lot about how if we didn't have the darkness we wouldn't feel the joy of being flooded with the light. The contrasts are what give us the beauty down here. A philosophical, smiling day!Karma has been restless and wanting to go out on the porch and then come back in--then out--till I just cut her off. So she's a bit annoyed with me...hehe! I am hoping the humidity will die down soon. I can take the heat pretty well in this apartment, but not the humidity. I am on third floor and there is usually a breeze living in Fargo.I was here a year in February and I am still so delighted with it--even if I had to downsize and it is quite crowded in here. Last summer Leah and I put a mesh screen up with outdoor velcro out on the balcony, which is enclosed on five sides. This spring Dagan and I covered the floor with forest green outdoor carpeting so the bugs can't get in thru the floor boards, either. The carpeting makes it feel like a screened in porch now. When it is nice out I can leave both the door and the screen door propped open all day long and not worry about bugs. It was like putting on an addition to the apartment! I love to sit out there and read in good weather. Karma loves being able to come in and out at will, of course--me, too! This is the first time I have had to close it up for a couple of days. Seems so early to be having to do that?I have felt pretty good today. Was a little queasy still this morning for a while, but then okay--just exhausted. So, heading to bed to read.

Friday, June 16, 2006

I guess being sick this week was more draining than I thought. I basically slept late, watched TV, waited for the AC to cool the place down (sticky, humid day), played with Karma, wrote a letter, read magazines, answered emails, washed a couple loads of clothes, and now I am going to shower (so I am sparkly clean for the clean sheets) and then head in to the bedroom to read, watch something on tape (I can only watch what I tape on the bedroom VCR on that VCR), play hide and seek with Karma before bed (our usual routine lately), and crash with no alarm set for tomorrow. Just a nice, peaceful, uneventful day in my very own personal sanctuary. I feel so grateful and blessed! Glad to be alive this moment, this day. Big smile on my face!! Doesn't take an awful lot to make me happy and content-hehe! :)

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Dagan came for lunch and he got my computer to recognize a CD/DVD again. Don't ask me how--I haven't a clue. Leah and I went to Dr. John's. Home again. Warm day. The box fan in the bedroom window died a quiet death, after an increasingly noisier recent life--hehe! It now lies in the bottom of the dumpster. I read on the porch for quite a while--such a beautiful evening! Then I came inside and watched An Unfinished Life, which I really enjoyed. Almost too warm to move much. I hate to close it up in here, but the humidity seems to be worse. We'll see how it is to sleep and if it cools off enough tonight?I was working on a card yesterday and finished it up today. Light green handmade paper with a white handmade paper mould circle glued on the front (sunflower). It has an inside white cardstock sleeve and is tied together with yarn. I colored the sunflower with radiant pearls before I glued it on and the white mould paper is so porous that it absorbed the glue and spread the color all over and made it look like a watercolor! Looks okay, tho. So, next time--glue it on first and then color after it is nice and dry-duh! About time I get to making cards. I have completely used up my stash of handmade cards. And I do write a lot of letters. Have to work on that this weekend.And I, also, have my "homework" from the chiropractor--to write down what my dream life would be if I had nothing to hold me back? Not physically, financially--no boundaries--what would I want my life to be like? What would my true path be? Dr. John doesn't even need to read it--just wants to help me to release my own blockages that are holding me back from being able to be the best me I can be. That's why I like him--he is a believer in miracles, positive thinking, and creative visualization. Not sure he'd put those exact labels on himself, but he has great positive energy and believes in the power of the mind and heart. He also suggested I make a collage of all the dreams--all the things I'd like to have in my life. I am thinking of doing an altered book, actually--been wanting to try one of those for a long time. Hummm??? And I am not rushing this. I take these things very seriously and want to do some heavy thinkin' on the subject before I put pen to paper. I may be milling on this here, too--that's a definite possibility.I'm hoping to get to bed a little earlier tonight. Heading to bed to read The Book Of Ruth. Very interesting so far!

Finally feeling better today and made it to the chiropractor's. Still feeling a little weak and shakey like you do after having the flu, but definitely on the mend. Didn't feel up to our first night of painting, tho. My son, Dagan, his wife, Leah, our friend, Jennifer, and I plan to start meeingt on Wednesday nights to try our hands at learning to paint with acrylics--and then work up to oils. We haven't decided how often to meet, either. They decided to wait until I can come next week--hurray! I am really looking forward to this. I have been attempting to learn how to paint with watercolors for the past few years, so this will be an entirely different skill to learn. We got table easels and some additional acrylic paints. I had a lot of the other supplies (acrylics and oils) and we moved all that over to Dagan and Leah's apartment last month (didn't want to paint at my aprtment because the of paint fumes-especially oils-and my cockatiel). I am not sure what I want to attempt first? Now I guess I have a little more time to decide. Probably a landscape with flowers or flowers. Sounds rather unexciting, I suppose, but I do love flowers.I have been going to a chiropractor, Dr. John, for about 7 weeks or so. It is the first time I have seen physical improvement since I began my slow physical decline in 1993! Which gave me the incentive to finally change my eating habits. I had been gradually doing a change to a healthier diet, but I never thought about eliminating (or nearly so) wheat and dairy, and I had never made such a full-fledge effort! The eliminating wheat and dairy was what Dr. John suggested, and I have read that it helps some people with fibromyalgia, so I am going for it. I order groceries online and get food delivered once a month, so it will take me a couple of months to be completely switched over--but I am actually 80% or more switched over already in June. I gave away a lot of the food--and was amazed at how much food actually has wheat in it! I am learning how to do wok, macrobiotic, and just generally healthier cooking.I am also trying to stay away from food with chemicals and gradually eliminating those foods also. I weaned off my pain and sleep meds in May and started free of those in June, too. So, some days are rough, but on the whole there is a gradual improvement! My back is better, so I can sit at the computer, or stand to chop veggies, or hunch over crafts, or sit and paint more in a day! Instead of about three 45-60 minute sessions a day (I have to set a timer and take long breaks), I can usually do an hour at a time now and am up to 4-5 sessions a day--without paying dearly for it the next day!! Doesn't sound like much, but it means the world to me. Talk about incentive! :)Anyways, it was a beautiful day. I tried a new recipe for rice with fresh chopped spinach-Jade Rice. Was good just by itself. Tomorrow am making a chicken stir fry to put on top of it. After all my sleeping round the clock, I still ended up on my night hours when all was said and done. I'll have to set the alarm to be sure I'm up tomorrow and have my prep work done. Dagan is coming for lunch and then he'll look at some things on my computer. (For example, it can't seem to recognize when a CD is in it anymore?) He works close by and he's my trusty techie-hehe! God bless him! So, it is off to read before bed. :)

Monday, June 12, 2006

Until I go to sleep or see the sun rising, it is still the same day to me. Midnight doesn't mean a thing in my world-hehe! I was totally sucked into the computer today. I confess, I am a "Favorites" Freak! I was searching blogs to come back to read later, for information on my new way of eating/supplies & books for it, and for information on sprouting your own seeds. I have been sitting here off and on most of the evening. Am too sore to say much else--but I am excited about all my finds!! Managed to half-watch a sillier movie on USA called Along Came Polly, but taped the premier of The 4400 to watch later. Oh and BTW, the commandments series--they don't always turn out as you might think and might not be about the commandment that you thought!Am off to read in bed and crash. Am getting closer to the end of Happy Are The Meek by Andrew M. Greeley--from a box of books I borrowed a few years back from my dear friend Ruby in Wisconsin. I am coming to the end of the box after all this time!! Only three more books to go after this one. Maybe she'll decide to drive over to visit me this summer to pick them up? :):) Meanwhile--read and sleep. Maybe I'll get to the blog sooner tomorrow night...

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Two three-hour movies with subtitles are a bit much for one day. I am on another break with over an hour left to go. I can only sit about two hours maximum in my comfortable lounge chair--my best spot for sitting. I am so used to doing two things at once and you cannot do that when you have to read subtitles. So no letter writing or making cards or reading magazines while I watched today. The first one I rented (thank God for Netflix) was the 1972 version of Solaris, a bizarre sci-fi movie. I have the newer one coming. I like to do that, get the old version, then the new one, and compare them. I certainly hope the newer one makes more sense. I started to listen to the commentary and learned that the director, Andrei Tarkovsky, didn't seem to worry himself about cohesiveness or sticking to what was written by the author, so I have hopes for a better version coming soon-hehe!The one I am watching now is by director Krysztof Kieslowski and called The Decalogue. Ten one hour movies with different cinematographers depicting the ten commandments in strange but interesting ways, thusfar. The first disc is just 1-3. I had previously rented Blue, White, and Red by this director and enjoyed them all--so had to order the commandments series, of course. His movies are intense and slow-moving with a lot of attention to detail.I know, I know--I should be telling you more about myself. I will. I am just wrapped up in #2- adultery, I assume, and can't get it off my mind. This woman has been dogging her husband's doctor and trying to get him to tell her if her husband, who just had surgery, is going to die or not. He just kept telling her, "I don't know." When I stopped the DVD she had just told the doctor that her husband is infertile, she still loves him, but she has had an affair, is 3 months pregnant ,(and feels this is her last chance to have a baby--I don't understand why), and whether she keeps the baby or has an abortion depends on whether her husband lives or dies. A lady of secrets!! Whew! The first one seemed to be on the false god commandment. A father and son spent a lot of time on the computer and they seemed to think it could figure out and measure anything. They used the computer and a math equation and the recent temperatures to figure out how thick the ice was on the lake. The dad assured his son that it could hold three times his weight, so he could go out and try his new skates. His son and another boy fell through the ice and drowned the next day. Very sad, but you could see that one coming a mile away! Not sure what will happen with this one and I don't want to ruin the surprises for anybody else watching these. So, back I go for my last movie session tonight. I guess I will be writing about whatever I feel like talking about at the moment, eh? :)

Saturday, June 10, 2006

Going to try this and see if I can figure this out. I'm a night owl--it's 1:00 am, but since I didn't get as much sleep last night I am unwinding already. Just wanted to see if I could get this started--so this will be brief. :) Off I go to finish the details.